'A Culturally Diverse Comedy Night': Ticket Giveaway!

On the eve of Cultural Diversity Week, internationally renowned performer Joe Avati will head a line-up of comedians for a special show to help raise funds for anti-bullying organisation, Bully Zero Australia Foundation.

A Culturally Diverse Comedy Night will be held at the Abruzzo Club in East Brunswick on Thursday March 13 (the Friday date now cancelled):

More details and ticket information can be found at www.joeavati.com

Reflecting on his own experiences of being bullied in the schoolyard because he was called Giuseppe (he could never find a mug with his name on it!), Joe has teamed up with fellow comedians Tahir, Gabriel Rossi, and Mayumi Nobetsu to put on a fantastic night of stand-up comedy to give a boost to a very worthy cause that has not only affected one in five Australians, but has impacted all four stand-up comedians.

“I am thrilled to have this show supporting Bully Zero Australia Foundation”, says BZAF CEO Oscar Yildiz. Racial bullying is very common, but thanks to the brilliant work of comedians such as Joe, Tahir, Gabriel and Mayumi, multiculturalism is celebrated rather than judged and criticised.”

A credit to this kind of comedy, where they recount stories of their upbringing with humour, is that it has the very opposite effect of bullying, and that is of celebrating different cultures and promoting unity”.

Adds Joe, with a laugh, “I was bullied because of my ‘stinky’ lunch. Mum would make me a sandwich of white bread with salami. My friends had hundreds and thousands on their bread, while we had hundreds and thousands under the mattress," he quips.

Melbourne-based comedian and father of two, Gabriel Rossi, has been on both sides of the fence, but concedes either position is one he’d want to see his children in. “I embarrassed this one kid in front of the entire class once. But he got me back by waiting for me outside the front of the school for weeks. I ended up having to sneak out of school another way”.

Showing bullying exists everywhere, Japanese-born comedian Mayumi Nobetsu had her fair share of it, too. “In Junior High School, more traditional girls treated me like I was different. One particular girl started to convince all of my friends to hang out with her, which meant I was alone during recess and lunch breaks. After a while, I decided to read up on bullying, and I understood that people bully because of jealously, insecurity and immaturity. Fortunately, once I entered senior high school, the bullying stopped”.

Star of Fat Pizza and Housos, popular comedian Tahir is also joining the line-up. For more information and ticket purchase details, head to www.joeavati.com/tour

And Josie's Juice blog readers have the chance to win one of FIVE double passes to the show at the Abbruzzo Club. It's on this Thursday, so enter now! Here's all you need to do:

- 'Like' the Josie's Juice Facebook page

- Share this link on your Facebook wall

- Follow me on Instagram and Twitter if you are on those platforms

- Comment below on why you'd like to win a double pass to the show on Thursday

*Competition drawn on the morning of Thursday 14 March, and open to Australian residents only

Tatia Pilieva: 'First Kiss' - Viral Video

Filmmaker Tatia Pilieva asked total strangers to kiss upon first meeting. Here's the result:



Updated:

The now-viral video is actually… an ad for clothes!

Ugh.

Most of the strangers are professionals performers who are experienced in acting out love and intimacy for the camera.

It takes the gloss of a tad. But, still… it's nice, yes?

'Kyle and Jackie O' number one for Kiis 1065 ratings: 2014

In news just in, the Sydney radio ratings are in: the 'Kyle and Jackie O' show are in at number one with their new breakfast show at Kiis 1065.

Meanwhile, it's not so good news at their old stomping ground at 2DayFM, where Merrick, Sophie, Jules and Mel B have halved their audience share; in fact, they are now at the bottom of the breakfast ratings.

Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O new Kiis 1065 breakfast show has tied with Jonesy and Amanda’s WSFM for the number one spot among FM commercial stations in Sydney, with the Australian Radio Network’s big punt to rebrand the struggling Mix station in Sydney paying off.

For more, go to media site Mumbrella here.

And for more on the #KJShow win, watch the moment they found out the fab news:



And the photo of the celebratory madness. Congrats!

Updated:

Just posted on the 'Kyle and Jackie O' Facebook page:

Kyle and Jackie O

Wow! What an absolutely amazing day it's been.

We had the results of our first ratings this morning and KIIS 1065is now Sydney's new number one FM radio station and, thanks to all of you guys, the Kyle and Jackie O Show is Sydney's new number one FM breakfast show!!!

The truth is, we've all been worried sick not knowing exactly how this was going to turn out, so this result is more than we could ever have hoped for. We were almost in tears this morning, it's been one of the most exciting and happy days of our careers. To think that before January 20th KIIS didn't even exist and now it's #1, is an amazing feat.

So many so-called radio experts wrote us off, kept saying that it was going to be a disaster and that we would fail etc, etc, but in just two months we've gone to number one.

We're both very much aware that without you guys it just wouldn't have happened. You stuck with us, you helped us get the KIIS message out there and the way you responded to the show and showed your support was just amazing.

We're also both really happy for our good friends Jonesy and Amanda. Even though they've been our competition for the past five years they've also been kind and really decent people and deserve big congratulations on a fantastic result. So, good on ya Jonesy and Amanda!

We have a new home at KIIS that we LOVE; we have an amazing team working with us; and we have the fiercest, most loyal listeners IN THE WORLD!

Thank you all so, so much xxx

‪#‎KJArmy‬

'Ban Bossy': Viral Video

This is very cool. And important. For girls - and boys - to watch. Heck, man and women. On its way to being viral NOW, it shows Beyoncé, Condoleezza Rice and Jane Lynch unite in the quest to ban the word 'bossy'. Watch:



You can read more - and pledge to ban 'bossy' here.

Says the site:
"When a little boy asserts himself, he's called a “leader.” Yet when a little girl does the same, she risks being branded “bossy.” Words like bossy send a message: don't raise your hand or speak up. By middle school, girls are less interested in leading than boys—a trend that continues into adulthood. Together we can encourage girls to lead."

Join the conversation by using this hashtag: #banbossy

• 
  

'Turbo' - DVD Review and Giveaway - 20 to win!

The 'Turbo' DVD release is here! 

'Turbo' is available for download right now (from March 5), and it arrives on Digital HD on March 5 and on Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray and DVD on March 12.

And 'Josie's Juice' blog has TWENTY to give away! Read on for more. Here's the packshot:

We've just had our own little home premiere of the new DVD - via the fabulously immediate digital download - and it was, by all accounts -  a really fun flick. Says Estella, 6: "It was really fun! And I loved the characters… Turbo was my favourite, because he's just really cool. He was slow at first, and then he was given special powers from a cool car. At the end he lost his power, then he got his power back! It was awesome!"

You can often download Digital HD versions of the movie before the physical versions are available in the shops (Turbo is available a week before Blu-ray & DVD release). What's more, you can get it for the kids as soon as they start asking you for it, instead of waiting until you're next able to pick one up. Saves all that pestering!

It's great for road trips and family vacations, because Digital HD downloads to all your platforms, meaning you can watch it anytime, anywhere.

In honour of 'Turbo' character, we all had a family taco making session, a kind of tribute to 'Turbo' taco-making character Tito. Here's the yummy result:

The ingredients!

The finished result - fresh tacos... YUM!

If you wanna do it yourself, here's the ingredients and method:

After a Taco-gorging dinner, the kids played with the Turbo pinball machine… score! They mastered it!

Directed by David Soren and from the team behind 'Madagascar' and 'Kung Fu Panda', it's one of those perfect for kids and adults and kidults kinda flick, and features LOL-worthy voices from Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamatti, Michael Peña, Snoop Dogg, Maya Rudolf, Michelle Rodriguez and Samuel L. Jackson.

When you watch the flick, you can share your own review using the hashtags: #turbomovie #digitalhd #20^thcenturyfox.

Oh, and when you buy 'Turbo' on DVD or Blu-ray at Woolworths you receive a bonus Dreamworks Hero card!

You can often download Digital HD versions of the movie before the physical versions are available in the shops. The best bit is that it's the Digital HD downloads to all your platforms, meaning you can watch it anytime, anywhere, on any device. No pestering parents to buy it at the shops… and, it's a week early!

The Blu-ray release exclusive special features include Smoove Move’s Music Maker, and you can watch action-packed music videos featuring songs from the film.                  

Another extra? You get to 'meet' Tito! And director David Soren provides an introduction for a scene that was deleted from the film. David Soren also gives an introduction for a storyboard sequence that eventually made it into the film. Viewers can even see picture-in-picture comparison to the final cut. Extremely cool for young movie buffs.

You can also create your own shell from select-able parts. Additional special features: Champions Corner, where host Paul Page interviews Turbo one-on-one to hear all about his racing techniques and inspirations.

Dave Burgess, Head of Character Animation on the film, shows the audience how to draw: Turbo, Whiplash, Skidmark, Burn, Smooth Move, White Shadow, Chet and customisable Racers. You can also see Turbo and all the rest of the snail crew in a break- down of the cool components that make up each of their shells.

So, how to win a copy? Here's all you do!

- 'Like' the Josie's Juice Facebook page
- Follow me on Twitter and Instagram if you have those platforms
- Share this link on your Facebook wall (all steps a must to be eligible)
- Comment below (or on email) on why you and the kids would love to win a copy of Turbo on DVD
- Email your address details in case you are a winner to: josiegags@optusnet.com.au
*Competition open for one month, and to Australian residents only

'Turbo is available on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital HD March 12' and via download right now.

John Travolta responds to Idina Menzel 'Adele Dazeem' blunder

I think it's time to… let it go (see what I did there? John does it even better, below…)

Following John Travolta's mix-up at the 2014 Oscars, where he announced Irina Menzel as Adele Nazeem right before her incredible performance on stage.

"I've been beating myself up all day," John Travolta, 60, said. "Then I thought...what would Idina Menzel say, She'd say, Let it go, let it go! Idina is incredibly talented and I am so happy Frozen took home two Oscars Sunday night!"

So. There you have it. John knows what he did and poor bugger is kinda mortified.

Let's all, er, let it go now, eh?

The Adele Dazeem Name Generator

Now you can use this widget on slate.com to Travolitify your own name.

Created by Chris Kirk and Jim Festante, in honour of when John Travolta called Idina Menzel "Adele Dazeem" at yesterday's Oscars, you can see what your name would be if it got the JTrav treatment.

You know you wanna…

(PS: mine is Jodie Gonzaleez!)

Go here.